Carriage for transporting an ingot to a roller table



A. NECTOUX April 4, 1967 CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 11, 1965 April 4, 1967 A. NECTOUX 3,312,360

CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE Filed March 11, 1965 6 Sheets-Sheet z A. NECTOUX April 4, 1967 CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 11, 1965 April 4, 1967 A. NECTOUX 3,312,360

CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE Filed March 11, 1965 6 SheetsSheet 4 April 4, 1967 A. NECTOUX 3,312,360

CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE Filed March 11, 1965 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 April 4, 1967 A. NECTOUX 3,312,360

CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE Filed March 11, 1965 e sheets-sheets United States Patent 3,312,360 CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORTING AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE Andr Nectoux, Le Creusot, France, assignor to Societe des Forges et Ateliers du Creusot, Paris, France, a company of France Filed Mar. 11, 1965, Ser. No. 438,958 Claims priority, application France, Mar. 13, 1964, 967,246; Sept. 11, 1964, 987,796 Claims. (Cl. 214-64) The invention relates to a carriage for transporting an ingot to a roller table, which carriage will move perpendicularly to the direction in which the ingots are to be discharged on to the table, comprising a chassis and a laterally tilting chair which carries the ingot and tips it on to the table.

The object of the invention is to embody a compact carriage which can consequently be used in existing plants, does not need any special roller tables and does not need any rollers on the carriage itself.

According/to the invention there is provided a carriage for transport of an ingot to a roller table comprising a chassis and a chair for receiving the ingot and titltable laterally relative to the direction in which the carriage is constructed to travel to discharge an ingot on to the table, means to control the lateral tilt of the chair on the chassis and a device which will urge the ingot out of the chair when the chair has completed a predetermined degree of the lateral tilting movement.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to one particular form of embodiment which is given by way of example and illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a vertical section through the plant, in a plane passing through the middle of the carriage and perpendicular to the track on which it runs.

FIGURE 2 is similar to FIGURE 1, the chair having tilted in order to bring the ingot into position on the first rollers of the table.

FIGURE 3 is similar to FIGURES 1 and 2, and shows the ingot displaced by the pusher device of the plant.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section through a variant of the plant in a plane passing through the middle of the carriage and perpendicular to the track on which it runs.

FIGURE 5 is similar to FIGURE 4, the chair having tilted in order to direct the ingot towards the first rollers of the table.

FIGURE 6 is similar to FIGURES 4 and 5, and shows the ingot displaced by the pusher device of the plant.

The plant illustrated in FIGURES 1 to 3 comprises a roller table 1 intended to receive the ingots conveyed by a carriage running on a track 2 whereof the direction is perpendicular to the direction in which the ingots are discharged on to the table.

The carriage comprises a chassis 3 which runs on the track 2 by means of tyres 4.

On the chassis 3, a chair 5 is mounted in pivoting fashion on a spindle 6 carried by hearing supports 7 fast with the chassis.

In the position for movement of the carriage, the chair 5 rests on the chassis by way of its pivoting spindle 6 and its edge 8.

When placed in the chair, the ingot 9 rests on the base 10 of the chair and on the edge 11 of one longitudinal side.

Tilting of the chair is controlled by a link 12 comprising two rollers 13 and 14 acting on a rocking lever 15 articulated to a horizontal spindle 16 on the chassis '3.

The end of the rocking lever 15 is fast with a roller track 17 which forms a seating for the two rollers 13 and 14.

3,312,360 Patented Apr. 4, 1967 The track 17, controlled by the rollers 13 and 14, is connected to the chair 5 by links 19 which are articulated on the one hand to spindles 20' carried by the track 17, and on the other hand to spindles 21 fast with the chair 5.

The lower end of the link 12 may be controlled by any suitable device for lifting or lowering the link 12 and imparting movement to the chair 5.

The drawing illustrates a crank arm 22 whereof one end is articulated to a spindle 23 carried by the link 12, and the other end is fast with a driving spindle 24.

When the crank arm 22 rotates in the direction of the arrow 25, it causes the link '12 to rise, the rollers 13 and 14 to come into position in the track 18, and the chair 5 to tilt, passing through the position illustrated in FIGURE 2 in which the ingot 9 is placed on the first two rollers of the table. In this position, the centre of gravity G of the ingot is still outside the table.

It should be noted that while the link 12 is moving vertically and causing the chair 5 either to tilt laterally or resume its position, the two rollers 13 and 14, having taken up their position in the track 18, serve to detain the chair 5 or cause it to tilt, whatever the direction in which this chair is urged in the course of its tilting. There is consequently a true hooking action between the end of the link 12 and the chair-tilting device, which action continues throughout any cycle of tilting and return to the running position.

The tilting device which has just been described has a fixed station beneath the plant between the two rails 2, and it takes, up very little room and does not in any way hinder running of the carriage.

The plant furthermore comprises a device for pushing the ingot 9 on to the roller table. This device comprises a lever 26 terminating in a pusher head 27, and articulated in a bearing 28. The spindle 29 on which the pusher lever 26 tilts is fast with a double lever 30 where'- of the ends 31 are articulated to two links 32 situated on either side of the chair and connecting the ends of the double lever 30 to two fixed points 33 fast with the chassis of the carriage. These fixed points 33 are mounted on supports 34. The fixed points 33 pass through elongated apertures 35 in the links 32.

The ingot-pusher device which has just been described operates in the following manner:

When the ingot 9 has been placed on the first rollers of the table (FIGURE 2), the links 32 are so dispose-d that their elongated apertures 35 bear by way of one of their ends against the fixed points 33. When the chair 5 continues to tilt, the links 32 detain the double lever 30, which pivots and imparts a pivoting motion to the pusher lever 26 whereof the head pushes the ingot 9 on to the roller table. The centre of gravity G of the ingot is then clearly on the table, and the ingot may be driven by the control rollers of the table.

When the crank arm 22 controlling the link 12 rotates in the direction of the arrow 36, the link 12 drops again, the chair 5 passes through the position in which it was, as shown in FIGURE 2, the pusher head 27 resumes its position, and the chair 5 continues to move and resumes the running position illustrated in FIGURE 1.

The plant which has just been described does not need any positive motor-driven control on the carriage. Control is carried out by the lower part of the plant at a point where the control members do not constitute a hindrance.

Moreover, the ingot is positively discharged on to the roller table in order to be picked up thereon, the movements being carried out very rapidly and without any risk of the ingot being diverted from its path.

The plant illustrated in FIGURES 4 to 6 is similar to that described with reference to FIGURES 1 to 3. It comprises a roller table 1 and a carriage having a chassis 3 3 on which a chair 5 is mounted in pivoting fashion about spindles 6.

Tilting of the chair 5 is controlled by a link 12 driven by a crank arm 22 keyed to a shaft 24. The link carries rollers 13 and 14 intended to come into position in a track 18 on a rocking lever 15 articulated to a horizontal spindle 16 on the chassis 3.

The rocking lever 15 is connected to the chair 5 by links 19.

The pusher device for the ingot 9 comprising a lever 26 terminating in a pusher head 27 and articulated in a bearing 28. The spindle on which the lever 26 tilts is fast with a double lever 36 whereof the ends 31 are articulated tov two links 32 situated on either side of the chair, these links 32 comprising elongated apertures 35.

The spindles 37 are seated in the apertures 35, and are carried by arms 38 capable of tilting on spindles 39 fast with parts 7 fixed to the chassis.

On the opposite side to the apertures 35 with respect to the spindles 39, the arms take the form of a cam 40 whereof the end bears in the inoperative position against an abutment 41. Each cam 40 is situated in the plane of a roller 42 whereof the spindle is carried by the rocking lever 15.

Finally, the chair comprises a loosely rotating roller 43-.

The plant which has just been described operates in the following manner.

The ingot 9 on its chair 5 is brought into position facing the roller table-1, and then the ingot is tilted towards the first rollers 1, which are rotating.

At the end of a first movement, the levers 26 and 30 have not yet rotated with respect to the chair, the ends of the apertures 35 are not yet in contact with the spindles 37, and the rollers 42 come into contact with the cams 40.

During the following movement, the rollers 42 urge the cams 40, and impart rotation to the arms 38. The movement is transmitted directly to the links 32, and consequently to the pusher27.

By virtue of this construction, movement of the pusher is not directly bound up with movement of the chair 5, which'is very small during the second movement; the roller 43 on the chair remains substantially on a level with the rollers 1 of the table, and the ingot is put down on to the latter at very low speed, even Without the motor driving the crank arm 22 having been previously slowed down.

At the end of the tilting action, the ingot is pushed by the pusher 27 beyond the axis of the roller 43 on the chair.

In the plant which has just been described, there is no driving roller on the carriage, and the chair 5 does not overlap between the rollers of the table.

In addition, the cam imparts progressive control to the pusher 27, and the progressive nature may moreover be adjusted by modifying the profile of the cam 40.

Finally, tilting drive may be imparted to the chair by a constant-speed motor.

The invention is naturally not limited by the details of the forms of embodiments which have just been described, which details could be modified without departing from the scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A carriage for transport of an ingot to a roller table comprising a chassis, a chair on said chassis for receiving the ingot, said chair being tiltable laterally relative to the long axis of said chassis to discharge the ingot onto the table, means mounted on said chassis for controlling the lateral tilt of said chair and means for urging the ingot out of said chair when said chair has completed a predetermined degree of lateral tilt, said last named means comprising a pusher lever articulated to said chair, a control lever connected to said pusher lever, a link articulated at one end to said control lever, an elongated aperture at the other end of said link, a first spindle on said chassis received in said aperture, the length of said aperture determining the degree of tilt of said chair and said link rotating said pusher about its point of articulation to urge an ingot out of said chair.

2. A carriage as described in claim 1 including an arm, a second horizontal spindle on said chassis receiving said arm, a track formed on said arm, a connecting link pivotally connected to said arm adjacent said track and to said chair and chair tilt means engaging in said track, said track pivoting when said chair is tilted.

3. A carriage as described in claim 2, said chair tilt means being disposed beneath said track and comprising a roller engaging said track during tilting movement rotating said arm and tilting said pusher lever.

4. A carriage as described in claim 2 including an abutment on said chassis limiting rotation of said arm when said chair returns to normal position on said chassis.

5. A carriage as described in claim 2 including a cam pivotally mounted on said chassis, said first spindle being mounted adjacent an end of said cam and roller means on said arm engaging and rotating said cam when said arm is rotating said cam when said arm is rotated by said chair tilt means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 857,396 6/1907 Hammond l98l44 1,195,522 8/1916 Soderstrom 214-62 1,624,323 4/ 1927 Flowers 21464 2,576,974 12/1951 Smith et al 214-510 2,760,657 8/ 1956 Flowers 214-64 GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner.

SI-IERIDAN, Examiner, 

1. A CARRIAGE FOR TRANSPORT OF AN INGOT TO A ROLLER TABLE COMPRISING A CHASSIS, A CHAIR ON SAID CHASSIS FOR RECEIVING THE INGOT, SAID CHAIR BEING TILTABLE LATERALLY RELATIVE TO THE LONG AXIS OF SAID CHASSIS TO DISCHARGE THE INGOT ONTO THE TABLE, MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID CHASSIS FOR CONTROLLING THE LATERAL TILT OF SAID CHAIR AND MEANS FOR URGING THE INGOT OUT OF SAID CHAIR WHEN SAID CHAIR HAS COMPLETED A PREDETERMINED DEGREE OF LATERAL TILT, SAID LAST NAMED MEANS COMPRISING A PUSHER LEVER ARTICULATED TO SAID CHAIR, A CONTROL LEVER CONNECTED TO SAID PUSHER LEVER, A LINK ARTICULATED AT ONE END TO SAID CONTROL LEVER, AN ELONGATED APERTURE AT THE OTHER END OF SAID LINK, A FIRST SPINDLE ON SAID CHASSIS 